Why Can a Tooth Hurt When You Bite Down but Not at Any Other Time?

Your tooth feels completely normal while you’re talking. It doesn’t ache while you’re sitting at your desk. Hot and cold drinks don’t seem to bother it.

Then you bite into something and suddenly there it is: a sharp or uncomfortable sensation.

You stop chewing and the discomfort disappears.

Pain that occurs specifically when biting can be confusing, particularly when the tooth seems perfectly fine the rest of the time.

There are several reasons this can happen, and the way the discomfort behaves can provide useful clues.

Your Teeth Experience Significant Pressure

Before looking at what might cause the pain, it helps to understand just how much work your teeth do.

Every time you chew, forces travel through the crown of the tooth, down through its roots and into the surrounding tissues and jawbone.

Healthy teeth are designed to cope with these forces extremely well.

But if something has changed in the tooth or the tissues around it, pressure from biting may suddenly reveal a problem that isn’t noticeable when the tooth is resting.

A Crack Can Sometimes Be the Culprit

Cracks can be difficult because they aren’t always visible.

A tooth may develop a small crack after biting something hard, following years of grinding or simply as the tooth and existing restorations age.

When you bite, pressure may cause sections of the tooth around the crack to move very slightly.

That movement can irritate the sensitive tissues inside the tooth.

Interestingly, some cracked teeth hurt when pressure is applied, while others produce a sharper sensation when you release your bite.

The symptoms can also come and go, which sometimes makes identifying the exact tooth surprisingly difficult.

A Filling May Have Changed

Fillings experience the same daily chewing forces as your natural teeth.

Over time, a restoration can wear, chip or develop changes around its edges.

If the tooth or filling is no longer distributing biting forces normally, you may begin to notice discomfort during chewing.

Similarly, after having a new filling placed, the tooth can sometimes feel as though it contacts slightly earlier than the surrounding teeth.

Because our mouths are extremely sensitive to tiny differences, even a small change in bite can feel surprisingly obvious.

The Tissues Around the Tooth Can Become Tender

The tooth itself isn’t always responsible.

Each tooth is supported by tissues that help absorb normal biting forces.

If these tissues become irritated, biting can make the tooth feel tender or bruised.

Grinding and clenching can sometimes contribute because the teeth may be subjected to prolonged pressure, particularly overnight.

This may explain why a tooth or group of teeth feels tender when chewing even though there is no obvious damage.

Problems Inside the Tooth Can Cause Pressure Sensitivity

The centre of a tooth contains its pulp, which includes nerves and blood vessels.

If the pulp becomes inflamed or infected, symptoms can vary considerably.

Some people experience obvious toothache or temperature sensitivity. Others may initially notice discomfort primarily when biting.

This is why the absence of constant pain doesn’t necessarily mean a tooth should be ignored.

Why Can It Be So Hard to Identify Which Tooth Hurts?

Dental pain can sometimes be deceptive.

You may be convinced that one tooth is responsible when the actual source is the tooth beside it, above it or below it.

Because neighbouring teeth share nerve pathways, the brain isn’t always brilliant at identifying exactly where a dental sensation originates.

That’s one reason examining the area can be more useful than trying to diagnose it based on the sensation alone.

Don’t Keep Testing It

When a tooth hurts while biting, there’s a natural temptation to keep biting on it to see if it still hurts.

You try once.

Then again.

Then perhaps on the other side for comparison.

If a tooth is irritated, repeatedly loading it with pressure isn’t particularly helpful.

Instead, pay attention to what triggers the sensation. Is it hard foods? Does it hurt when you bite down or when you release? Is the discomfort getting stronger or more frequent?

If a tooth repeatedly hurts when you bite, even though it feels completely normal at other times, come and see us. We can examine the tooth, check your bite and investigate what may be causing the discomfort before a small problem has the opportunity to become a bigger one.